奥巴马总统国情咨文(2)
Experts from across the political spectrum warned that if we did not act, we might face a second depression.
不同政治派别的专家对我们提出警告，如果我们不采取行动，我们可能会面临第二次经济大萧条。
So we acted—immediately and aggressively.
所以我们果断而迅速地采取了行动，一年后的今天，
And one year later worst of the storm has passed.
最糟糕的暴风雨时期已经过去了。
But the devastation remains.
然而，灾难性的效应依旧存在。
One in 10 Americans still cannot find work.
现在仍然有十分之一的美国人找不到工作。
Many businesses have shuttered.
许多企业歇业，
Home values have declined.
房屋价格下跌，
Small towns and rural communities have been hit especially hard.
小城镇和乡村受到的冲击尤其严重。
And for those who’d already known poverty, life has become that much harder.
对那些本已很贫穷的人来说，生活变得更加艰难。
This recession has also compounded the burdens that America’s families have been dealing with for decades
这次经济大萧条使美国家庭几十年来承载的重压进一步加剧。
the burden of working harder and longer for less; of being unable to save enough to retire or help kids with college.
这种压力就是：即使他们工作更努力、时间更长，也得不到更多的收入，无法存够钱退休或者帮孩子读完大学。
So I know the anxieties that are out there right now.
我能够理解人们现在的焦虑，
They’re not new.
这些问题并不是新的，
These struggles are the reason I ran for President.
而我就是为了解决这些问题才竞选美国总统。
These struggles are what I’ve witnessed for years in places like Elkhart, Indiana; Galesburg, Illinois.
这几年，我在印第安纳州的埃尔克哈特和伊利诺伊州的盖尔斯堡亲眼目睹了人们的困境，
I hear about them in the letters that I read each night.
也从每晚阅读他们的信件中了解情况。
The toughest to read are those written by children—asking why they have to move from their home,
最让人难过的是阅读那些孩子的来信，他们在信中问，为什么他们不得不从家里搬出来，
asking when their mom or dad will be able to go back to work.
或者他们的爸爸妈妈什么时候才能重新找到工作。
For these Americans and so many others, change has not come fast enough.
对这些美国公民以及其他像他们一样的人来说，变革的速度似乎还不够快。
Some are frustrated; some are angry.
对此，有些人感到灰心，还有人感到愤怒。
They don’t understand why it seems like bad behavior on Wall Street is rewarded, but hard work on Main Street isn’t;
他们不能理解，为什么华尔街那些不好的行为好像能受到嘉奖，而普通民众的努力工作却得不到回报；
or why Washington has been unable or unwilling to solve any of our problems.
为什么政府似乎不能够或不愿意解决人们的问题；
They’re tired of the partisanship and the shouting and the pettiness.
他们已经厌烦了党派分歧、叫喊和卑劣的争斗。
They know we can’t afford it.
他们认为我们解决不了这些问题，
Not now.
至少现在还不能。